Soldering furnace



April 12, 1949. A. L. DOWERS SOLDERING FURNACE Filed Aug. 8, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 April 12, 1949. A. 1.. DOWERS 2,467,298

SOLDERING FURNACE Filed Aug. 8, 1946 v s Sheets-Sheet 5 gwucwvtom dillpo wars Patented Apr. 12, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE This invention relates to soldering furnaces and more particularly to an improved portable soldering furnace of the general type used by tinners.

It is an object of this invention to provide a soldering furnace whereby the coppers used by tinners will be heated more quickly and will stay tinned longer than with any furnace presently in use.

Another object of this invention is to provide a soldering furnace which uses as a fuel such gases as butane, propane or other suitable liquified gas which may be stored in a pressurized tank and used directly therefrom, rather than using fuels as gasoline, alcohol, or other gases which require the use of an air pump and a system of heat generation, thereby resulting in considerable saving in time and a great lessening of the fire hazard prevalent in the previous types of such furnaces.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a soldering furnace which uses liquified gas as butane, propane, or similar gases which are liquified under pressure, thereby eliminating the use of air pumps and the necessity of generating the fuel as in former types of soldering furnaces.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a soldering furnace having an adjustable stand attached thereto whereby this furnace may readily be used by tinners for leveling the furnace when working on gutters, cornices or flashings on sloping roofs, and to provide a readily accessible connection and valve on the furnace for the connection of a blow torch for melting soldered connections apart.

With the above and other objects in view, my invention consists in the arrangement, combination and details of construction disclosed in the drawings and specification, and then more particularly pointed out in the appended views.

In the drawings, wherein similar reference characters designate similar parts throughout the respective views,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a soldering furnace constructed according to an embodiment of this invention,

Figure 2 is a front elevation, partly in section, taken on the line 22 of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a top plan view, and

Figure 4 is a fragmentary detailed section taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 3.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral l designates generally a pressurized fuel supply tank to be used in connection with a furnace constructed according to an embodiment of my invention. Apair of U-shaped legs or bases II are fixed to the tank In on the lower side thereof for hold- 1 Claim. (Cl. 126-239) ing it erect. A combined filler and pressure safety valve 12 is engaged in a boss M on the upper side of the tank ID. The combined filler and pressure safety valve l2 comprises a tubular body section l5 threadably engaged in the boss l2 having a closure l6 engageable in the upper end f the body l5 and a pop off valve l1 engaging in the side of the body [5.

A pressure gauge I8 is engaged in a boss l9 also on the upper side of the tank In for indicating the pressure of the fuel in the tank if! at all times.

In actual use the tank II] is filled with a liquifled gas up to a certain level, leaving a space in the tank above the fuel for expansion of the gas under variant temperature and pressure variations. This expansion space is generally ten percent of the total tank capacity and for this purpose an opening 20 is provided in the tank II] on one side thereof at a distance below the top of the tank at the maximum upper fuel level, and a valve 2| is used to close this opening 20.

The gaseous fuel is taken from the tank In out through a boss 22 on the upper side of the tank in which an elbow fitting 24 having a gas feed valve 25 on the upper side is engaged. A four way cross connection 26 is fastened to the fitting 24 by a coupling member 27 and a plug 28 is fastened on to the downwardly extending arm of this fitting 26. An elbow 29 is secured to an upwardly extending connection of the fitting 26 to which is connected a connector 30' to which a blow torch is adapted to be engaged and having a blow torch needle valve 3|.

A pair of forwardly extending arms 32 are fixed to the side of the tank I 0 by welding or other suitable fastening means.

The lower burner supporting section 34 of a heater box 35 is fastened between the outer ends of the arms 32 and the upper or cover section 36 is engageable in the lower section 34 and extends upwardly and forwardly therefrom. A forwardlyv extending and forwardly and upwardly inclined solder iron rest or support 31 is carried by the heater box 35 and extends within the box 35 a short distance as at 38.

For supporting the heater box 35 above the ground or on a slanting roof, there is provided an adjustable telescoping arm 39 having a tubular upper section All fixed to the bottom of the heater box 35, a lower section M is slidable therein and a set screw 42 carried by the tubular section 4% engages the side of the section ll for securing the sections 40 and M in selected adjusted position.

The upper section 36 of the heater box 35 is formed with a large opening 42 in the front wall thereof through which a soldering iron resting on support 31 may extend into the heater box 35.

A burner nozzle 44 extends through the front Wall of the lower section 34 of heater box 35 and a burner needle valve 45 is fixed on the forward end thereof, having a handle 46 by which an operator can control the flame and heat in the heater box 35. A tube or pipe 41 extends from the valve 45 and is connected to the forward fitting of the cross fitting 26 by a resilient o-r flexible tubing 48.

As the entire device is designed to be portable and readily handled by a tinner on a job, a handle 49 is provided. This handle 49 is supported above the furnace by a wide inverted U-shaped supporting member 50 fixed to the upper side of the tank In near each end thereof and an inverted V-shaped supporting member-| fixed to the top of the heater box 35. Bolts 52 are fixed to the upper ends of each supporting member 59 and 5| by welding or brazing or other suitable fastening means, and a threaded rod 54 extends through the bolts 52 and handle 49 being locked in place by a lock nut 55 on each end thereof.

In the use and operation of this furnace, the fuel under pressure is placed in the tank through the filler plug 12 until the tank I0 is filled to a level up to the valve 2| 0f the expansion space. The valve 45 of the burner 44 must be closed and the pressure in the tank I0 is indicated on the gauge I3. In this condition the stove may be readily transported to any place as on to a roof where it will be readily accessible by a tinner in his work. When it is desired to operate the furnace as such the burner valve 45 is opened and the fuel in gaseous state emanating therefrom may be ignited in the heater box 35. The soldering irons may be rested on the inclined supporting plate 37 having one end directly in the flame of the burner. If the work is being done on a sloping roof, the adjustable arm 39 may be adjusted If it is desired to use the furnace for a blow desire to claim is:

An improved portable soldering furnace comprising a fuel tank, a combined filler and safety valve fitting on said tank, a heater box, means securing said heater box adjacent said tank, a soldering iron supporting plate on said box and extending therefrom, a burner nozzle in said box below said plate, a tube connecting said nozzle to said fuel tank, an adjusting valve on said tube for controlling the flow of fuel therethrough, a second nozzle fitting connected in said tube adj acent said tank for attaching a blow torch nozzle, a. fuel flow valve on said latter fitting, fixed supporting members on said tank and telescoping extensible supporting members on said box for supporting said furnace horizontally on an angular surface.

ALVA L. DOWERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 596,536 Park Jan. 4, 1898 883,216 Lundy Mar. 31, 1908 942,245 Burgess Dec. 7,, 1909 1,295,349 Monroe Feb. 25, 1919 1,560,016 Chapman Nov. 3, 1925 McCartney et a1 Sept. 8, 1931 

